Andries de Grip receives € 450.000 NRO “Lifelong Learning” grant

The research project “Lifelong Learning and competence development” of Andries de Grip, Director of the Research Centre for Education and the Labour Market (ROA) and Professor of Economics has been granted € 450.000.

The research will give insights in how we can foster lifelong learning in order to deal with challenges like fast technological developments and the consequences of the postponement of retirement in the Netherlands. Since it is rather a broad research topic, the research is divided in 3 more specific projects.

De Grip and his research team (Barbara Belfi, Peter van Eldert, Didier Fouarge, Annemarie Künn-Nelen, Davey Poulissen and Bas ter Weel) aim on getting interesting insights on the drivers and effects of lifelong learning.

We spoke with him about his research aims. “Our research will give insights in how we need to foster lifelong learning and deal with challenges like fast technological developments and the consequences of the postponement of retirement in the Netherlands,” he says. “Since it is rather a broad research topic, we decided to focus on three major issues.

“In the first project we will explore to what extent it matters when you enter the labour market in the period of an economic crisis, what does this mean for your further career?

“Secondly, we will investigate the shifts in skills demanded on the labour market. Subsequently study how individuals keep their skills up to date in order to stay employable in this dynamic labour market. In the third project we dive more specifically into the groups which have a weaker labour market position, such as low educated workers and close-to-retirement employees. Lifelong learning is a research field with ample opportunities for scientific research. Moreover, there is a huge interest in lifelong learning research by policy makers in the ministries of education; social- and economic affairs, as well as the business world.

“Of course I can’t conduct this research alone, together with my research team (Barbara Belfi, Peter van Eldert, Didier Fouarge, Annemarie Künn-Nelen, Davey Poulissen and Bas ter Weel) we are aiming on getting interesting insights on the topic of lifelong learning.”